Love Worth Fighting For
By Indigo Siren
Disclaimer: Tekken is © to Namco. I am making no money from this fan fiction; it is just for fun. I however own all the characters that are not apart of the Tekken franchise. All rights reserved.
Chapter 8
The phone rung on the landing, begging to be heard. Miharu could hear it all right, but didn't bother moving from her curled up position beneath the mass of quilts piled on top of her. It kept on wailing with its persistent ringing, that was, until Miharu's father went to answer it.
"Hello? Oh hi, Hanii! I'm so glad you called! Still up for lunch? Great! I'll pick you up soon then! Bye!"
Miharu rolled over, scratching the grove of her back and hiding her face in her pillow. There was no school this Saturday morning. She felt lucky and had decided to waste it away by sleeping in. She was very tired and told herself that she deserved to snuggle up with the blankets once in a while.
Her father's knock on the door made her groan.
"Miharu, I hope you don't plan to sleep in all day?"
"No…" She managed to moan out, sinking lower into the mass of quilts.
"Well, do make a move soon! Anyway, I'm going out for lunch with Hanii. Don't know when I'll be back."
"Yeah, yeah… okay, love you…" She yawned out and settled back down.
He sighed. "Later, Miharu."
She didn't reply, but just lay there, trying to snooze away, ignoring the world. It was about ten minutes later before she realised she was truly wide-awake and could no longer sleep.
Curse her father and the invention known as the telephone!
She sat up, wavering slightly and turned towards the clock. It was going on twelve o'clock. She grumbled and pretty much flopped out of bed, heading straight for the bathroom to shower up.
After about fifteen minutes of cleaning up and dressing in a long, plain T-shirt and jeans worn at the knees, she managed to get trudge downstairs without tripping in her hazy state of mind and headed straight for the kitchen.
Her stomach was crying out for toast and marmalade, and so, obeying this, she jammed two slices of bread into the toaster and leaned onto the cold counter top as she waited for her breakfast to be grilled.
She stifled one of many yawns, disgruntled that she didn't get a good night's sleep. It hadn't been just the humid, groggy night air that had kept her up in a sweaty mess, it was the dreams of being trapped in the darkness, and not even having the woman in white able to save her. Her dreams were becoming confusing and nothing seemed to add up anymore, however much she thought about it. She couldn't link any of her dreams, though the same message seemed to be repeated over and over. Ever since the dream she had of Jin after being knocked out by Christie, she thought all these terrible nightmares would just go away. She thought the love that had surfaced would keep her safe. But she was wrong, and she was scared to fall asleep, though she would try and fail because of her impending fear.
She jumped not only at the sound of the toast popping up in the toaster, but also at the sound of something being posted through the mail box.
She put her toast onto a plate and abandoned them for just a moment, to go see what had been put through the door.
'Strange, it's a bit late for the mailman,' she thought.
On the wicker doormat sat a white envelope with exaggerated italic handwriting on. It lay face up to her as she approached, leaning down to pick up the envelope addressed to her. She raised an eyebrow, carefully looking it over. She distinctly noticed there was no stamp on the corner, and thought that it must have been posted by the person who wrote it.
She quickly opened the door, looking out to see if she could spot anyone about whom might have posted it.
The streets were clear, minus the cars coming to and fro along the road.
She sighed, knowing she'd probably just missed them.
She shut the door, putting her back to it as she carefully tore it open, looking in on a neatly folded up piece of paper. She pulled it out carefully, reading over the writing of the letter:
To Miss Miharu Hirano,
Your presence is requested at 'Le Beau Papillon', at 1 o'clock of this day. It is of importance that you attend. The name of the table reserved is under 'Hirano'. Once you arrive, your company will join you. Have a nice day.
The letter was left unsigned.
Miharu checked over it again and again, flipping it over to see if there was writing on the back, which there wasn't. Nothing else was inside the envelope. She slipped the paper back in, holding the envelope tightly within her hand.
Who could be inviting me to 'Le Beau Papillon'?
With the toast forgotten, she rushed upstairs to prepare quickly for whomever she was meeting.
***
Ornate in an ivory, sleeveless dress, Miharu stepped towards the entrance of 'Le Beau Papillon', around about five minutes to one.
She stood at the glass doors, peering inside at the fairly busy lunchtime bustle. Even though it was an illustrious, posh, French restaurant, it had found big duty with the wealthy business folk who wanted a decent lunch. Miharu felt deadly uncomfortable to go inside, enough that her whole body felt like it would fall apart with nervousness. Her sandals annoying chose the time to start itching and she had to try and ignore it.
She walked in, listening to soft violin music in the background. A waitress came to the door, giving her somewhat of a condescending look.
"Something I can help you with, dear?" She asked, looking Miharu over, as if she stood out like a sore thumb.
"Hi," Miharu quickly said, trying to get out of this woman's way as fast as possible. "I'm here to meet someone under the table name of 'Hirano'?"
The waitress huffed slightly, looking unbelieving. "I'll just go check."
The waitress sauntered off, leaving Miharu to wait, looking down so she wouldn't have to meet the eyes of anyone else within the place. Their stares seemed undermining to her.
A moment later, the waitress came back, her face placid and what seemed aghast. "There is a table under 'Hirano'. If you'd like to come this way." The waitress turned sharply, walking professionally on the high heels, having Miharu quickly keep up with her fast paced stroll towards a table at the back.
The clean and freshly covered mahogany table awaited her, and the waitress immediately, though slightly reluctantly pulled out a chair. She was doing her job cordially, but still slightly miffed that a girl like Miharu was getting to dine there.
Miharu knew she wasn't exactly a top class, rich girl and that she expected something like this from staff of this calibre.
"You have someone meeting you?" The waitress asked, setting Miharu under the table. "This is reserved for two."
"Yes, I would like to know who I'm meeting too." This surprised the waitress, who turned with a bewildered look on her face, going to grab the menus for the table. She set them ahead of the young girl. "What would you like to drink?"
"I'll order when my 'friend' gets here," Miharu said.
Without a word, the waitress left her, going back to take her position behind the bar.
The table was littered with many things Miharu found interesting enough to aptly play with while she waited. She unfolded and refolded the napkins, even made them into swans and what not, she messed around with the salt and pepper containers till she spilt some salt on the table and decided not to anymore. She looked at the clock that just seemed to tick slower and slower by the second…
… And just as she was falling asleep…
"This way, sir," the waitresses voice came as she approached.
She sat up straight, dusting down her dress, turning as a suited man passed the table, heading for the opposite chair. He turned to face her.
If she hadn't have been sitting down, she'd have fainted in horror.
It was the man from the Café Macaron, the one in the shades… the one she had mistaken for Jin. Her hands clenched tightly on her lap, eyes wide as he took a seat across from her. He smiled, and she thought her heart had stopped in fear. His eyes were once again hidden behind sunglasses, and it was a little bit of assurance that she couldn't see his eyes.
"Thank you," Kazuya said to the waitress, whom bowed politely and left them. He turned towards Miharu, who was trying her best not to shake in her seat. "Miharu Hirano, I'm so glad to finally talk to you."
'How does he know my name?' She thought and jumped as his hand came towards her. He held it out to her, offering a handshake.
'Oh well, it is rude not to…'
She extended her own frail hand and took his. The strength behind his hand was unnerving, and she tried her best to keep her handshake composed and calm, and not jittery like she felt.
Their hands parted and she quickly hid it back on her lap, still tingling from the warmth that resided from him. He was smiling so firmly at her, making her feel really uncomfortable. He was either doing it on purpose or he was totally oblivious to how she was feeling. She tried to keep her gaze on his face, depicting things out to look out so that she could keep her eyes locked on him. She noticed he was pretty tight, not many lines, especially around the mouth, telling her that he wasn't accustomed to smiling much.
"I'm glad you could make it," he said to her, his deep voice coming out eerily smooth. "Have you had a drink or something to eat?"
"Oh, uh, no," she said shyly.
"You can choose anything you want," he said, handing her a menu and she took it carefully.
Looking it over, she felt her stomach twist with some of the meals that were on the lunchtime menu. She didn't think she could stomach anything, especially with this man in her presence. She barely knew him, but he seemed to sure as hell know who she was. It was creepy…
"I'll, just settle with a drink if you don't mind," she said, closing the menu carefully. "A soda, please."
"Are you sure?" He asked kindly, though when he spoke it made her tremble, however he was speaking.
She nodded quickly. "Yes, very sure."
"Alright, but I hope you don't mind if I eat, it's been a busy day so far." He raised a hand, beckoning back over the waitress, who seemed to be very honoured to be in the presence of this man. He gave her their drinks orders, he himself having some wine, the finest they had. Though it only being lunch hour, it didn't deter him one bit to be drinking alcohol. He ordered himself a salad and sent the waitress on her way with their orders.
Kazuya turned back to Miharu. "Now I can get down to a formal introduction to you. If you don't know, I am Kazuya Mishima, the CEO of G-Corporation. You should know the name Mishima, no?"
Miharu nodded slightly. "Yes, I know the name Mishima. Are you related to Heihachi Mishima?"
For a brief moment, she could have sworn a cold essence came from his being, the smile faltering on his face, but it only seemed to last a second before his face was bright and warm, his smile widening a touch.
"Heihachi Mishima would be my father," he said simply, no emotion to his words.
Miharu's eyes widened. 'His son… and Jin is Heihachi's grandson… could he be…?'
Their drinks were brought to them. Miharu's was set ahead of her, as was Kazuya's, who instantly took a sip of it, giving a compliment to the waitress, whom sauntered off quickly, a blush on her face. Miharu fiddled with her glass for a moment, before taking a sip.
"I believe you went to school with my son, his name is Jin Kazama," Kazuya said, putting his glass down.
Miharu's thoughts were confirmed and she cradled the glass with uncertainty. She had a feeling that Jin was the reason of her being here.
"Yes, I do know him," Miharu said. "Is that why you invited me out? To ask about him?"
If his smile could have gone any wider, it would have. The girl had unknowingly got right down to the point, and he didn't really now need to beat about the bush. He could see she was ever more nervous for being so forward to ask that, but he had no intention of frightening her, and was going to be as civil and as kind as he could to get all the information he could out of her.
"People have been you see…" She trailed off quickly, in case she was wrong.
"You are right, my dear," Kazuya said, eyeing the glass of red liquid in front of him and then looking up to her soft, pale face. "I am here to talk to you about my son. I would like to ask you a few questions concerning him."
"I'll answer the best I can," she said weakly, she put the drink down and her fingers began playing with her dress as a distraction. She hoped his questions wouldn't be too personal.
"I hear you have been in affliction with him at some point," he said, watching her expression become a little worried. "I'm sure you like everyone else were baffled by his disappearance. I was just curious to know if you know where he is? Or has he contacted you?"
"I… was at some point friends with him," Miharu said slowly. "But I haven't spoken to him in two years?"
"Have you seen him around?" Kazuya pressed onwards, sipping his drink again.
She sipped her own and licked her lower lip. "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe…"
"Maybe?" Kazuya raised an eyebrow, watching her try to carefully conceal her emotions.
"As I say, I'm not sure. He's been keeping a low profile, I think…"
"Well, even so, he's be around and about where tournament matches are, though he only has attended some by what we've picked up on so far. And they have been… your matches…"
Miharu couldn't help but look up at him in shock. Had Jin really been around watching her matches? She remembered Xiaoyu saying that he'd been there during her match with Christie Monteiro.
"Oh, I wouldn't know," she said.
"From what we've picked up, we believe at one point you and he were… more then friends," he said carefully, her face ahead of him going completely white. "And that he is now trying to get in contact with you…"
She grabbed at the tablecloth, trying to cover up her shock. Her hand nudged her fork off the table and it tumbled onto the carpeting. She silently cursed, shaking and bent down, scrambling to pick it up. She sat back up, fork in hand, looking at him. He was smiling, hands interlocked in front of him on the tablemat. She placed the fork down, clearing her throat, close to falling apart.
"Oh… I don't know… if he is… well, he hasn't," she stuttered.
"Not yet, but he may," Kazuya said. "And we want to know if he does."
Miharu shrugged unsure whether to trust him. Her throat was dry and she reached out for her drink, her mind in a complete frenzy. She just wanted to get out of there. She gulped down a hefty mouthful of the liquid. She choked as if she swallowed a small lump and coughed, bending over away from the table. She put it all down to the fear, and how much she wanted a distraction.
She felt his hand rubbed against her back, gently patting it. "Are you alright?"
Her coughing fit practically ceased with the shock of him touching her. She sat up, nearly knocking her drink over, but fast hands had her catching it. He watched her, head tilted and she stood straight, looking around the room at the few people staring their way. They were whispering, things that she didn't want to hear. Maybe the situation looked strange, her and Mr Mishima, with an age gap… it was just so unthinkable! Why did she even consider it?
"I have to go," she said sharply, making sure she had her things.
"So soon?" He asked, touching her arm, a prickling sensation forcing its way up and she though she'd faint right there and then.
"Yes, I have other obligations to fill today," she answered, ready to rush away, but his hand was held firmly in place, not letting her go anywhere. She was starting to panic. He carefully pulled her to him, so that his mouth was close to her ear.
"You can go now, run to safety, but we'll be watching you," he whispered, so calm it was scary. "If you hold out on us on where he is, or up with him at any point, we'll find out… we know where you live, Miharu Hirano. Be very careful what you do."
His silky voice reverberated up her spine, and that rough hand of his rubbed against her arm. From the position she was in, most people in the restaurant would think he was nuzzling her neck. Once his grip loosened, she pulled away and escaped quickly, not looking back.
Kazuya watched her go and smirked to himself.
"Your salad, sir," the waitress said as she came with his food, setting it in front of him.
"Thank you," he said with a nod, watching her take Miharu's glass away as she went back to the bar.
Kazuya whipped out a phone from the inside of jacket and pressed the speed dial, holding it carefully to his ear as he let his fork play with his food. A long awaited answer came after it rung for some time. "Ah Konoha, you are there after all! Right, tell the men that Miss Hirano should be on priority monitoring. I don't trust her not to get in contact with my son. You should also be able to pick up a signal on her, as I slipped that new little temporary transmitter device into her drink when she was distracted. Thankfully she swallowed it, but not before nearly choking on it. A great little camouflaging device the lab boys came up with, they've actually done good work for once. Wherever Miss Hirano goes now, we'll know about it…"
***
She had run all the way home, afraid to see Kazuya looming over her shoulder again. She was scared out of her wits. Why was he asking this of her? She couldn't hand Jin over; she'd never do that, or even give him information about where he is or what he's doing.
She'd tried to forget about the encounter, but it had really shaken her up. On getting home, she had stripped down and had leapt into a cold bath. The sudden shock to the system brought her back to reality. She held her body within the water as her skin cooled down to an icy chill; she shivered, listening as her erratic breathing begin to curb. Slowly but surely, she recovered herself and clambered out the bath, washing up again and getting dressed again.
She hid out in her room lazily, trying not to be consumed by thoughts of what had happened in 'Le Beau Papillon'. To forget would be the best thing. If she avoided Kazuya Mishima from now on, she wouldn't have to worry about him again.
At some point she had fallen asleep, but thankfully, there were no nightmares awaiting her in the blissfulness of the unconscious world. In fact, no dreams altogether. When she awoke, it was an hour before Steve, Xiaoyu and Julia were coming over to pick her up for that party she'd agreed to go to a few days ago.
She rushed to get ready for their arrival…
… An hour later, now dressed in shiny, black, vinyl trousers and a glittering spaghetti strapped top, she was all ready to party.
Her dad had called and told her that he and Hanii were going to see a play at the local theatre so she knew he wouldn't be back for a while, thought it didn't matter in the least.
The doorbell rang out through the house and she hurried through the hallway, her thin strapped heels clicking against the floor with an echo, as she grabbed the handle of the door and opened it. She revealed Steve standing on her doorstep, dressed in an open Hawaiian shirt and a pair of red baggy bottoms, with a chain hanging at the side. She thought he looked gorgeous.
He smiled, tipping his sunglasses on the edge of his nose. "You look smashing!"
"Oh, you too," she said, grinning.
Xiaoyu's was waving from the open roof car that sat in front of her house. "HI MIHARU!" She shouted.
"Hi, Xiao!" Miharu waved back and quickly went back inside to grab her bag. She hurried back out and locked the door behind her, following Steve towards his car and hopping in beside the Chinese girl, who hugged her tightly.
"Been okay?" Xiaoyu asked.
"Been reasonable, some restless nights, nothing to worry about," Miharu said. She didn't intend to tell her about her encounter with Kazuya Mishima.
Miharu noticed Julia on the other side of Xiaoyu, sitting quietly.
"Hi there, Julia," Miharu addressed, getting the American girl's attention, who smiled lightly.
"Hi, Miharu," she said, and sighed softly, looking down.
"What's wrong?" Miharu inquired.
"She had to fight Lei last night in a match," Xiaoyu spoke up for the girl. "She won, but not without beating him up a lot first."
Julia sighed again. "We were both well into it. We both wanted to win. He always said that he never wanted to face me because he didn't want to hurt me…"
Miharu looked at her strangely, the look on the young American's full of regret, and maybe even more…
"Do you love him?" Miharu questioned.
Julia instantly snapped around, blushing like crazy. "What! No, I mean, he's my friend! He's old enough to be my father! We're close but… oh…" She gave up and went silent.
Xiaoyu smiled at her. "Loves knows no age…"
Julia hid her face.
Steve had pushed his sunglasses back on properly and was leaning over the seat, looking over the three beautiful women in the back seat.
"Ready to go ladies?" He asked, grinning wildly.
"LET'S PARTY!" Xiaoyu whooped, thrusting her hand in the air.
***
The lights switched colours throughout the club, the music blaring out, literally bursting through the walls as the dancers all around let their bodies move with the crazy beat. When Miharu and the others arrived, they wasted no time crashing out on the dance floor, moving along all the amateurs to really show them how things were done.
Miharu was going to forget about what happened earlier, and let her mind go with the flow. The club was so vibrant and enthralling, everyone around wanting to dance with Miharu, as she was one of the people being honoured in for participating in the King of Iron Fist Tournament.
Her mind now free with a few drinks Steve had brought for her and the others, Miharu let loose and danced around the club like a free spirit…
… That was until she was spun around in a flash by a face she'd never thought she'd come across again.
"Oh… Hwoarang…" She acknowledged, in a less then thrilled voice as she stared into the furious eyes of the Korean.
"This is something what I'd expect of a selfish little Japanese bitch like you! Flaunting yourself off on Christie's expense! You embarrassed her and everything she fought for!"
Miharu just smiled lightly. "What, fighting for another breast enhancement? She didn't even honour herself or me. She was head strong for her own good!"
Hwoarang was going completely red in the face. "You wouldn't know about honour with the way you were fighting! Like a vicious little dog!"
"Were we watching the same match?" Xiaoyu interrupted. "Because I do believe that Christie was more of dog then Miharu!"
Hwoarang suddenly completely forgot about Miharu's presence as he pushed her aside, stalking up to Xiaoyu, invading her personal space. But obviously, she wasn't in the least intimidated.
"And what do you know, you ignorant little shit?" Hwoarang snapped at her.
"A lot more than you think," Xiaoyu said, not raising her voice in the slightest. "If Christie is so bothered about losing, why doesn't she bring her wimpy, blow-me-up butt all the way over here and confront Miharu herself instead of sending her bed warmer to do the job for her?"
He was ready to strike her but held back, his lip clenched. "She's fucking upset! She doesn't feel like partying with people who don't respect her! She's packing up right now to go back to Brazil, completely ashamed…" He finally turned back to Miharu. "… All thanks to you."
"Oh, I'll be so guilty for the rest of my life," Miharu said sarcastically.
Hwoarang didn't bother with her anymore, and turned back to Xiaoyu. "Whatever! And anyway, I know you're holding out on where Kazama is! Tell me, or you'll be spending the night on an IV in the emergency room!"
"For pities sake!" Xiaoyu said, tired and aggravated. "I don't know! I've seen him, but he obviously doesn't want to get involved with people. Stop being so damn pig headed. If you're so desperate for his company, go out and find him!"
"I'm trying to find the bastard, but he just isn't anywhere!" Hwoarang roared at her, trying to make her back up a step, but instead just bashed against her body. She didn't falter.
"Okay, that's it, leave her alone, mate," Steve broke in as he came over, pushing Hwoarang back.
"You're no mate of mine," Hwoarang said, fists clenching and unclenching with rage.
"Oh, as if I didn't know that," Steve said, rolling his eyes dramatically. "Why don't you stop trying to pick fights with innocent bystanders and go get laid or something. Maybe Christie will be waiting for you when you get back, if Xiaoyu and Miharu haven't ripped your nuts off by then…"
Both girls named laughed and the Korean just growled, knowing he didn't want to bring attention to himself. He turned and walked away, pushing some innocent dancer out of his way. The unfortunate bystander swore loudly at him in Japanese and went back to dancing with her friends.
Xiaoyu and Miharu wiped tears out of their eyes, their laughter subsiding.
"You're so funny, Steve," Xiaoyu said, still giggling in remembrance of the comments he made to the Korean.
"I do my best," he said with a wink, turning to Julia who brought four drinks. "Ah, thank you!"
She smiled and handed the simple lemonades to the two younger girls while Steve had a sparkling water, for the fact he was driving, and Julia herself had a Vodka Ice.
Steve escorted Julia towards the dance floor, while Xiaoyu and Miharu headed towards one of the side seats, to sit down after exhausting themselves with dancing.
Xiaoyu relaxed back, drinking her drink down to quench her dry throat.
"You should slow down," Miharu suggested. "Drinks aren't cheap here, you know."
Xiaoyu stopped and grinned. "Oh well, I'll get over it! And besides, sodas shouldn't be over priced."
Miharu nodded in agreement and gulped down most of her own drink quickly, putting it down on the table ahead of her. Xiaoyu finished hers in record time and put it down next to the nearly empty glass of Miharu's.
They watched the life of the club around them, the people dancing to their hearts content. Miharu was listening to the rhythm happily, feeling it gently murmur against her chest as the dance music raged on, with many people falling under the powerful spell to move with the beat.
Xiaoyu fiddled with one of her long, soft pigtails, looking over the happy Hirano girl. She looked across the room, still addressing the girl without looking at her. "Miharu, you know, I'm really curious…"
"About what?" Miharu gave Xiaoyu her full attention.
"Well, you know… why you really entered the tournament." Xiaoyu saw the frown on her friend's face and put up her hands defensively. "Don't get me wrong, I do trust what you say, but… it's kinda weird to me. I've never known you to be the one to oppose anyone, and well, I don't think even the money is worth anything to you…"
"Well, it is kind of…" Miharu said, hugging her knees up to her chest.
"Though, why are you really in the tournament? You can honestly tell me." Xiaoyu shifted positions uncomfortably. "Are you in about Jin too?" Miharu's head snapped around to look at her. "You are, aren't you? It's just, I've heard these weird stories and rumours flying around school… about you and Jin…"
Miharu stared at the curious, yet quite disturbed looking within her friend's eyes.
"Tell me, Miharu, what's really going on between you and Jin?" She asked plain and simple.
Miharu turned to look into the crowd and sighed. "You want me to be honest?"
"Yes, very."
Miharu sighed once more. "I love him."
There was a silence that hung on the Chinese girl's lips.
"You remember that night two years ago when I stayed over, and you woke up to find me in Jin's room… well, I never went to study. You see, earlier in that day, after I got my practice exam results back, we took out tutoring session to the lake side and I gave him that bird clay piece I made… and he… kissed me…"
Xiaoyu's mouth hung open as she listened, shocked by all this news she'd never been told.
"… And I ran away…" Miharu continued. "… But I was so sorry for it, and I began to feel for him, and then… that night, we got together. And no, we didn't have sex, we never did. I'm in tournament now to meet up with him again. It's all about love now… and I want him to come back… to me."
She fell silent and finally turned to Xiaoyu, who had tearful eyes, lip trembling.
"Xiao?"
"Y-You… never even told me," she said, her voice shaking. "Not even a hint, nothing. I'm your best friend, Miharu, and yet you've kept this from me for two years… and you… you deceived me…"
"Please don't be angry, Xiao, I made a promise…"
Xiaoyu stood up. "And he left you, and you still honoured it though you didn't know what he felt? I don't hate you for that, it's the fact that for so long you laid into us how much you hated him, and now it seems you went straight over our heads to date him too… over the people who really truly liked him…"
"I do like him, even you yourself told me to get to know him," Miharu pleaded in her defence.
"How long would you have kept on lying?" Xiaoyu snapped, looking at her with glistening eyes. "How long could you have kept the world out of this secret?"
"Actually… Rubi knows…" Miharu admitted.
"WHAT!" Xiaoyu was literally blowing her top. "YOU TOLD RUBI! I'VE BEEN YOUR FRIEND LONGER! DOESN'T THAT MEAN WE TRUST EACH OTHER MORE?"
Miharu couldn't answer her, seeing that the girl in front of her was already upset.
"Forget it, Miharu," Xiaoyu fumed. "JUST FORGET IT!"
The Chinese girl turned away from Miharu and stormed off.
"Xiaoyu! Wait! Where are you going?"
"Home!" She shouted over her shoulder. "And I'll walk!"
Miharu stood helplessly in the crowd, watching an irate Xiaoyu disappear.
*********************************************************************************
A/N: Just so you know, I don't hate either Hwoarang or Christie, I've just had them this way for the purpose of this story.
By Indigo Siren
Disclaimer: Tekken is © to Namco. I am making no money from this fan fiction; it is just for fun. I however own all the characters that are not apart of the Tekken franchise. All rights reserved.
Chapter 8
The phone rung on the landing, begging to be heard. Miharu could hear it all right, but didn't bother moving from her curled up position beneath the mass of quilts piled on top of her. It kept on wailing with its persistent ringing, that was, until Miharu's father went to answer it.
"Hello? Oh hi, Hanii! I'm so glad you called! Still up for lunch? Great! I'll pick you up soon then! Bye!"
Miharu rolled over, scratching the grove of her back and hiding her face in her pillow. There was no school this Saturday morning. She felt lucky and had decided to waste it away by sleeping in. She was very tired and told herself that she deserved to snuggle up with the blankets once in a while.
Her father's knock on the door made her groan.
"Miharu, I hope you don't plan to sleep in all day?"
"No…" She managed to moan out, sinking lower into the mass of quilts.
"Well, do make a move soon! Anyway, I'm going out for lunch with Hanii. Don't know when I'll be back."
"Yeah, yeah… okay, love you…" She yawned out and settled back down.
He sighed. "Later, Miharu."
She didn't reply, but just lay there, trying to snooze away, ignoring the world. It was about ten minutes later before she realised she was truly wide-awake and could no longer sleep.
Curse her father and the invention known as the telephone!
She sat up, wavering slightly and turned towards the clock. It was going on twelve o'clock. She grumbled and pretty much flopped out of bed, heading straight for the bathroom to shower up.
After about fifteen minutes of cleaning up and dressing in a long, plain T-shirt and jeans worn at the knees, she managed to get trudge downstairs without tripping in her hazy state of mind and headed straight for the kitchen.
Her stomach was crying out for toast and marmalade, and so, obeying this, she jammed two slices of bread into the toaster and leaned onto the cold counter top as she waited for her breakfast to be grilled.
She stifled one of many yawns, disgruntled that she didn't get a good night's sleep. It hadn't been just the humid, groggy night air that had kept her up in a sweaty mess, it was the dreams of being trapped in the darkness, and not even having the woman in white able to save her. Her dreams were becoming confusing and nothing seemed to add up anymore, however much she thought about it. She couldn't link any of her dreams, though the same message seemed to be repeated over and over. Ever since the dream she had of Jin after being knocked out by Christie, she thought all these terrible nightmares would just go away. She thought the love that had surfaced would keep her safe. But she was wrong, and she was scared to fall asleep, though she would try and fail because of her impending fear.
She jumped not only at the sound of the toast popping up in the toaster, but also at the sound of something being posted through the mail box.
She put her toast onto a plate and abandoned them for just a moment, to go see what had been put through the door.
'Strange, it's a bit late for the mailman,' she thought.
On the wicker doormat sat a white envelope with exaggerated italic handwriting on. It lay face up to her as she approached, leaning down to pick up the envelope addressed to her. She raised an eyebrow, carefully looking it over. She distinctly noticed there was no stamp on the corner, and thought that it must have been posted by the person who wrote it.
She quickly opened the door, looking out to see if she could spot anyone about whom might have posted it.
The streets were clear, minus the cars coming to and fro along the road.
She sighed, knowing she'd probably just missed them.
She shut the door, putting her back to it as she carefully tore it open, looking in on a neatly folded up piece of paper. She pulled it out carefully, reading over the writing of the letter:
To Miss Miharu Hirano,
Your presence is requested at 'Le Beau Papillon', at 1 o'clock of this day. It is of importance that you attend. The name of the table reserved is under 'Hirano'. Once you arrive, your company will join you. Have a nice day.
The letter was left unsigned.
Miharu checked over it again and again, flipping it over to see if there was writing on the back, which there wasn't. Nothing else was inside the envelope. She slipped the paper back in, holding the envelope tightly within her hand.
Who could be inviting me to 'Le Beau Papillon'?
With the toast forgotten, she rushed upstairs to prepare quickly for whomever she was meeting.
***
Ornate in an ivory, sleeveless dress, Miharu stepped towards the entrance of 'Le Beau Papillon', around about five minutes to one.
She stood at the glass doors, peering inside at the fairly busy lunchtime bustle. Even though it was an illustrious, posh, French restaurant, it had found big duty with the wealthy business folk who wanted a decent lunch. Miharu felt deadly uncomfortable to go inside, enough that her whole body felt like it would fall apart with nervousness. Her sandals annoying chose the time to start itching and she had to try and ignore it.
She walked in, listening to soft violin music in the background. A waitress came to the door, giving her somewhat of a condescending look.
"Something I can help you with, dear?" She asked, looking Miharu over, as if she stood out like a sore thumb.
"Hi," Miharu quickly said, trying to get out of this woman's way as fast as possible. "I'm here to meet someone under the table name of 'Hirano'?"
The waitress huffed slightly, looking unbelieving. "I'll just go check."
The waitress sauntered off, leaving Miharu to wait, looking down so she wouldn't have to meet the eyes of anyone else within the place. Their stares seemed undermining to her.
A moment later, the waitress came back, her face placid and what seemed aghast. "There is a table under 'Hirano'. If you'd like to come this way." The waitress turned sharply, walking professionally on the high heels, having Miharu quickly keep up with her fast paced stroll towards a table at the back.
The clean and freshly covered mahogany table awaited her, and the waitress immediately, though slightly reluctantly pulled out a chair. She was doing her job cordially, but still slightly miffed that a girl like Miharu was getting to dine there.
Miharu knew she wasn't exactly a top class, rich girl and that she expected something like this from staff of this calibre.
"You have someone meeting you?" The waitress asked, setting Miharu under the table. "This is reserved for two."
"Yes, I would like to know who I'm meeting too." This surprised the waitress, who turned with a bewildered look on her face, going to grab the menus for the table. She set them ahead of the young girl. "What would you like to drink?"
"I'll order when my 'friend' gets here," Miharu said.
Without a word, the waitress left her, going back to take her position behind the bar.
The table was littered with many things Miharu found interesting enough to aptly play with while she waited. She unfolded and refolded the napkins, even made them into swans and what not, she messed around with the salt and pepper containers till she spilt some salt on the table and decided not to anymore. She looked at the clock that just seemed to tick slower and slower by the second…
… And just as she was falling asleep…
"This way, sir," the waitresses voice came as she approached.
She sat up straight, dusting down her dress, turning as a suited man passed the table, heading for the opposite chair. He turned to face her.
If she hadn't have been sitting down, she'd have fainted in horror.
It was the man from the Café Macaron, the one in the shades… the one she had mistaken for Jin. Her hands clenched tightly on her lap, eyes wide as he took a seat across from her. He smiled, and she thought her heart had stopped in fear. His eyes were once again hidden behind sunglasses, and it was a little bit of assurance that she couldn't see his eyes.
"Thank you," Kazuya said to the waitress, whom bowed politely and left them. He turned towards Miharu, who was trying her best not to shake in her seat. "Miharu Hirano, I'm so glad to finally talk to you."
'How does he know my name?' She thought and jumped as his hand came towards her. He held it out to her, offering a handshake.
'Oh well, it is rude not to…'
She extended her own frail hand and took his. The strength behind his hand was unnerving, and she tried her best to keep her handshake composed and calm, and not jittery like she felt.
Their hands parted and she quickly hid it back on her lap, still tingling from the warmth that resided from him. He was smiling so firmly at her, making her feel really uncomfortable. He was either doing it on purpose or he was totally oblivious to how she was feeling. She tried to keep her gaze on his face, depicting things out to look out so that she could keep her eyes locked on him. She noticed he was pretty tight, not many lines, especially around the mouth, telling her that he wasn't accustomed to smiling much.
"I'm glad you could make it," he said to her, his deep voice coming out eerily smooth. "Have you had a drink or something to eat?"
"Oh, uh, no," she said shyly.
"You can choose anything you want," he said, handing her a menu and she took it carefully.
Looking it over, she felt her stomach twist with some of the meals that were on the lunchtime menu. She didn't think she could stomach anything, especially with this man in her presence. She barely knew him, but he seemed to sure as hell know who she was. It was creepy…
"I'll, just settle with a drink if you don't mind," she said, closing the menu carefully. "A soda, please."
"Are you sure?" He asked kindly, though when he spoke it made her tremble, however he was speaking.
She nodded quickly. "Yes, very sure."
"Alright, but I hope you don't mind if I eat, it's been a busy day so far." He raised a hand, beckoning back over the waitress, who seemed to be very honoured to be in the presence of this man. He gave her their drinks orders, he himself having some wine, the finest they had. Though it only being lunch hour, it didn't deter him one bit to be drinking alcohol. He ordered himself a salad and sent the waitress on her way with their orders.
Kazuya turned back to Miharu. "Now I can get down to a formal introduction to you. If you don't know, I am Kazuya Mishima, the CEO of G-Corporation. You should know the name Mishima, no?"
Miharu nodded slightly. "Yes, I know the name Mishima. Are you related to Heihachi Mishima?"
For a brief moment, she could have sworn a cold essence came from his being, the smile faltering on his face, but it only seemed to last a second before his face was bright and warm, his smile widening a touch.
"Heihachi Mishima would be my father," he said simply, no emotion to his words.
Miharu's eyes widened. 'His son… and Jin is Heihachi's grandson… could he be…?'
Their drinks were brought to them. Miharu's was set ahead of her, as was Kazuya's, who instantly took a sip of it, giving a compliment to the waitress, whom sauntered off quickly, a blush on her face. Miharu fiddled with her glass for a moment, before taking a sip.
"I believe you went to school with my son, his name is Jin Kazama," Kazuya said, putting his glass down.
Miharu's thoughts were confirmed and she cradled the glass with uncertainty. She had a feeling that Jin was the reason of her being here.
"Yes, I do know him," Miharu said. "Is that why you invited me out? To ask about him?"
If his smile could have gone any wider, it would have. The girl had unknowingly got right down to the point, and he didn't really now need to beat about the bush. He could see she was ever more nervous for being so forward to ask that, but he had no intention of frightening her, and was going to be as civil and as kind as he could to get all the information he could out of her.
"People have been you see…" She trailed off quickly, in case she was wrong.
"You are right, my dear," Kazuya said, eyeing the glass of red liquid in front of him and then looking up to her soft, pale face. "I am here to talk to you about my son. I would like to ask you a few questions concerning him."
"I'll answer the best I can," she said weakly, she put the drink down and her fingers began playing with her dress as a distraction. She hoped his questions wouldn't be too personal.
"I hear you have been in affliction with him at some point," he said, watching her expression become a little worried. "I'm sure you like everyone else were baffled by his disappearance. I was just curious to know if you know where he is? Or has he contacted you?"
"I… was at some point friends with him," Miharu said slowly. "But I haven't spoken to him in two years?"
"Have you seen him around?" Kazuya pressed onwards, sipping his drink again.
She sipped her own and licked her lower lip. "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe…"
"Maybe?" Kazuya raised an eyebrow, watching her try to carefully conceal her emotions.
"As I say, I'm not sure. He's been keeping a low profile, I think…"
"Well, even so, he's be around and about where tournament matches are, though he only has attended some by what we've picked up on so far. And they have been… your matches…"
Miharu couldn't help but look up at him in shock. Had Jin really been around watching her matches? She remembered Xiaoyu saying that he'd been there during her match with Christie Monteiro.
"Oh, I wouldn't know," she said.
"From what we've picked up, we believe at one point you and he were… more then friends," he said carefully, her face ahead of him going completely white. "And that he is now trying to get in contact with you…"
She grabbed at the tablecloth, trying to cover up her shock. Her hand nudged her fork off the table and it tumbled onto the carpeting. She silently cursed, shaking and bent down, scrambling to pick it up. She sat back up, fork in hand, looking at him. He was smiling, hands interlocked in front of him on the tablemat. She placed the fork down, clearing her throat, close to falling apart.
"Oh… I don't know… if he is… well, he hasn't," she stuttered.
"Not yet, but he may," Kazuya said. "And we want to know if he does."
Miharu shrugged unsure whether to trust him. Her throat was dry and she reached out for her drink, her mind in a complete frenzy. She just wanted to get out of there. She gulped down a hefty mouthful of the liquid. She choked as if she swallowed a small lump and coughed, bending over away from the table. She put it all down to the fear, and how much she wanted a distraction.
She felt his hand rubbed against her back, gently patting it. "Are you alright?"
Her coughing fit practically ceased with the shock of him touching her. She sat up, nearly knocking her drink over, but fast hands had her catching it. He watched her, head tilted and she stood straight, looking around the room at the few people staring their way. They were whispering, things that she didn't want to hear. Maybe the situation looked strange, her and Mr Mishima, with an age gap… it was just so unthinkable! Why did she even consider it?
"I have to go," she said sharply, making sure she had her things.
"So soon?" He asked, touching her arm, a prickling sensation forcing its way up and she though she'd faint right there and then.
"Yes, I have other obligations to fill today," she answered, ready to rush away, but his hand was held firmly in place, not letting her go anywhere. She was starting to panic. He carefully pulled her to him, so that his mouth was close to her ear.
"You can go now, run to safety, but we'll be watching you," he whispered, so calm it was scary. "If you hold out on us on where he is, or up with him at any point, we'll find out… we know where you live, Miharu Hirano. Be very careful what you do."
His silky voice reverberated up her spine, and that rough hand of his rubbed against her arm. From the position she was in, most people in the restaurant would think he was nuzzling her neck. Once his grip loosened, she pulled away and escaped quickly, not looking back.
Kazuya watched her go and smirked to himself.
"Your salad, sir," the waitress said as she came with his food, setting it in front of him.
"Thank you," he said with a nod, watching her take Miharu's glass away as she went back to the bar.
Kazuya whipped out a phone from the inside of jacket and pressed the speed dial, holding it carefully to his ear as he let his fork play with his food. A long awaited answer came after it rung for some time. "Ah Konoha, you are there after all! Right, tell the men that Miss Hirano should be on priority monitoring. I don't trust her not to get in contact with my son. You should also be able to pick up a signal on her, as I slipped that new little temporary transmitter device into her drink when she was distracted. Thankfully she swallowed it, but not before nearly choking on it. A great little camouflaging device the lab boys came up with, they've actually done good work for once. Wherever Miss Hirano goes now, we'll know about it…"
***
She had run all the way home, afraid to see Kazuya looming over her shoulder again. She was scared out of her wits. Why was he asking this of her? She couldn't hand Jin over; she'd never do that, or even give him information about where he is or what he's doing.
She'd tried to forget about the encounter, but it had really shaken her up. On getting home, she had stripped down and had leapt into a cold bath. The sudden shock to the system brought her back to reality. She held her body within the water as her skin cooled down to an icy chill; she shivered, listening as her erratic breathing begin to curb. Slowly but surely, she recovered herself and clambered out the bath, washing up again and getting dressed again.
She hid out in her room lazily, trying not to be consumed by thoughts of what had happened in 'Le Beau Papillon'. To forget would be the best thing. If she avoided Kazuya Mishima from now on, she wouldn't have to worry about him again.
At some point she had fallen asleep, but thankfully, there were no nightmares awaiting her in the blissfulness of the unconscious world. In fact, no dreams altogether. When she awoke, it was an hour before Steve, Xiaoyu and Julia were coming over to pick her up for that party she'd agreed to go to a few days ago.
She rushed to get ready for their arrival…
… An hour later, now dressed in shiny, black, vinyl trousers and a glittering spaghetti strapped top, she was all ready to party.
Her dad had called and told her that he and Hanii were going to see a play at the local theatre so she knew he wouldn't be back for a while, thought it didn't matter in the least.
The doorbell rang out through the house and she hurried through the hallway, her thin strapped heels clicking against the floor with an echo, as she grabbed the handle of the door and opened it. She revealed Steve standing on her doorstep, dressed in an open Hawaiian shirt and a pair of red baggy bottoms, with a chain hanging at the side. She thought he looked gorgeous.
He smiled, tipping his sunglasses on the edge of his nose. "You look smashing!"
"Oh, you too," she said, grinning.
Xiaoyu's was waving from the open roof car that sat in front of her house. "HI MIHARU!" She shouted.
"Hi, Xiao!" Miharu waved back and quickly went back inside to grab her bag. She hurried back out and locked the door behind her, following Steve towards his car and hopping in beside the Chinese girl, who hugged her tightly.
"Been okay?" Xiaoyu asked.
"Been reasonable, some restless nights, nothing to worry about," Miharu said. She didn't intend to tell her about her encounter with Kazuya Mishima.
Miharu noticed Julia on the other side of Xiaoyu, sitting quietly.
"Hi there, Julia," Miharu addressed, getting the American girl's attention, who smiled lightly.
"Hi, Miharu," she said, and sighed softly, looking down.
"What's wrong?" Miharu inquired.
"She had to fight Lei last night in a match," Xiaoyu spoke up for the girl. "She won, but not without beating him up a lot first."
Julia sighed again. "We were both well into it. We both wanted to win. He always said that he never wanted to face me because he didn't want to hurt me…"
Miharu looked at her strangely, the look on the young American's full of regret, and maybe even more…
"Do you love him?" Miharu questioned.
Julia instantly snapped around, blushing like crazy. "What! No, I mean, he's my friend! He's old enough to be my father! We're close but… oh…" She gave up and went silent.
Xiaoyu smiled at her. "Loves knows no age…"
Julia hid her face.
Steve had pushed his sunglasses back on properly and was leaning over the seat, looking over the three beautiful women in the back seat.
"Ready to go ladies?" He asked, grinning wildly.
"LET'S PARTY!" Xiaoyu whooped, thrusting her hand in the air.
***
The lights switched colours throughout the club, the music blaring out, literally bursting through the walls as the dancers all around let their bodies move with the crazy beat. When Miharu and the others arrived, they wasted no time crashing out on the dance floor, moving along all the amateurs to really show them how things were done.
Miharu was going to forget about what happened earlier, and let her mind go with the flow. The club was so vibrant and enthralling, everyone around wanting to dance with Miharu, as she was one of the people being honoured in for participating in the King of Iron Fist Tournament.
Her mind now free with a few drinks Steve had brought for her and the others, Miharu let loose and danced around the club like a free spirit…
… That was until she was spun around in a flash by a face she'd never thought she'd come across again.
"Oh… Hwoarang…" She acknowledged, in a less then thrilled voice as she stared into the furious eyes of the Korean.
"This is something what I'd expect of a selfish little Japanese bitch like you! Flaunting yourself off on Christie's expense! You embarrassed her and everything she fought for!"
Miharu just smiled lightly. "What, fighting for another breast enhancement? She didn't even honour herself or me. She was head strong for her own good!"
Hwoarang was going completely red in the face. "You wouldn't know about honour with the way you were fighting! Like a vicious little dog!"
"Were we watching the same match?" Xiaoyu interrupted. "Because I do believe that Christie was more of dog then Miharu!"
Hwoarang suddenly completely forgot about Miharu's presence as he pushed her aside, stalking up to Xiaoyu, invading her personal space. But obviously, she wasn't in the least intimidated.
"And what do you know, you ignorant little shit?" Hwoarang snapped at her.
"A lot more than you think," Xiaoyu said, not raising her voice in the slightest. "If Christie is so bothered about losing, why doesn't she bring her wimpy, blow-me-up butt all the way over here and confront Miharu herself instead of sending her bed warmer to do the job for her?"
He was ready to strike her but held back, his lip clenched. "She's fucking upset! She doesn't feel like partying with people who don't respect her! She's packing up right now to go back to Brazil, completely ashamed…" He finally turned back to Miharu. "… All thanks to you."
"Oh, I'll be so guilty for the rest of my life," Miharu said sarcastically.
Hwoarang didn't bother with her anymore, and turned back to Xiaoyu. "Whatever! And anyway, I know you're holding out on where Kazama is! Tell me, or you'll be spending the night on an IV in the emergency room!"
"For pities sake!" Xiaoyu said, tired and aggravated. "I don't know! I've seen him, but he obviously doesn't want to get involved with people. Stop being so damn pig headed. If you're so desperate for his company, go out and find him!"
"I'm trying to find the bastard, but he just isn't anywhere!" Hwoarang roared at her, trying to make her back up a step, but instead just bashed against her body. She didn't falter.
"Okay, that's it, leave her alone, mate," Steve broke in as he came over, pushing Hwoarang back.
"You're no mate of mine," Hwoarang said, fists clenching and unclenching with rage.
"Oh, as if I didn't know that," Steve said, rolling his eyes dramatically. "Why don't you stop trying to pick fights with innocent bystanders and go get laid or something. Maybe Christie will be waiting for you when you get back, if Xiaoyu and Miharu haven't ripped your nuts off by then…"
Both girls named laughed and the Korean just growled, knowing he didn't want to bring attention to himself. He turned and walked away, pushing some innocent dancer out of his way. The unfortunate bystander swore loudly at him in Japanese and went back to dancing with her friends.
Xiaoyu and Miharu wiped tears out of their eyes, their laughter subsiding.
"You're so funny, Steve," Xiaoyu said, still giggling in remembrance of the comments he made to the Korean.
"I do my best," he said with a wink, turning to Julia who brought four drinks. "Ah, thank you!"
She smiled and handed the simple lemonades to the two younger girls while Steve had a sparkling water, for the fact he was driving, and Julia herself had a Vodka Ice.
Steve escorted Julia towards the dance floor, while Xiaoyu and Miharu headed towards one of the side seats, to sit down after exhausting themselves with dancing.
Xiaoyu relaxed back, drinking her drink down to quench her dry throat.
"You should slow down," Miharu suggested. "Drinks aren't cheap here, you know."
Xiaoyu stopped and grinned. "Oh well, I'll get over it! And besides, sodas shouldn't be over priced."
Miharu nodded in agreement and gulped down most of her own drink quickly, putting it down on the table ahead of her. Xiaoyu finished hers in record time and put it down next to the nearly empty glass of Miharu's.
They watched the life of the club around them, the people dancing to their hearts content. Miharu was listening to the rhythm happily, feeling it gently murmur against her chest as the dance music raged on, with many people falling under the powerful spell to move with the beat.
Xiaoyu fiddled with one of her long, soft pigtails, looking over the happy Hirano girl. She looked across the room, still addressing the girl without looking at her. "Miharu, you know, I'm really curious…"
"About what?" Miharu gave Xiaoyu her full attention.
"Well, you know… why you really entered the tournament." Xiaoyu saw the frown on her friend's face and put up her hands defensively. "Don't get me wrong, I do trust what you say, but… it's kinda weird to me. I've never known you to be the one to oppose anyone, and well, I don't think even the money is worth anything to you…"
"Well, it is kind of…" Miharu said, hugging her knees up to her chest.
"Though, why are you really in the tournament? You can honestly tell me." Xiaoyu shifted positions uncomfortably. "Are you in about Jin too?" Miharu's head snapped around to look at her. "You are, aren't you? It's just, I've heard these weird stories and rumours flying around school… about you and Jin…"
Miharu stared at the curious, yet quite disturbed looking within her friend's eyes.
"Tell me, Miharu, what's really going on between you and Jin?" She asked plain and simple.
Miharu turned to look into the crowd and sighed. "You want me to be honest?"
"Yes, very."
Miharu sighed once more. "I love him."
There was a silence that hung on the Chinese girl's lips.
"You remember that night two years ago when I stayed over, and you woke up to find me in Jin's room… well, I never went to study. You see, earlier in that day, after I got my practice exam results back, we took out tutoring session to the lake side and I gave him that bird clay piece I made… and he… kissed me…"
Xiaoyu's mouth hung open as she listened, shocked by all this news she'd never been told.
"… And I ran away…" Miharu continued. "… But I was so sorry for it, and I began to feel for him, and then… that night, we got together. And no, we didn't have sex, we never did. I'm in tournament now to meet up with him again. It's all about love now… and I want him to come back… to me."
She fell silent and finally turned to Xiaoyu, who had tearful eyes, lip trembling.
"Xiao?"
"Y-You… never even told me," she said, her voice shaking. "Not even a hint, nothing. I'm your best friend, Miharu, and yet you've kept this from me for two years… and you… you deceived me…"
"Please don't be angry, Xiao, I made a promise…"
Xiaoyu stood up. "And he left you, and you still honoured it though you didn't know what he felt? I don't hate you for that, it's the fact that for so long you laid into us how much you hated him, and now it seems you went straight over our heads to date him too… over the people who really truly liked him…"
"I do like him, even you yourself told me to get to know him," Miharu pleaded in her defence.
"How long would you have kept on lying?" Xiaoyu snapped, looking at her with glistening eyes. "How long could you have kept the world out of this secret?"
"Actually… Rubi knows…" Miharu admitted.
"WHAT!" Xiaoyu was literally blowing her top. "YOU TOLD RUBI! I'VE BEEN YOUR FRIEND LONGER! DOESN'T THAT MEAN WE TRUST EACH OTHER MORE?"
Miharu couldn't answer her, seeing that the girl in front of her was already upset.
"Forget it, Miharu," Xiaoyu fumed. "JUST FORGET IT!"
The Chinese girl turned away from Miharu and stormed off.
"Xiaoyu! Wait! Where are you going?"
"Home!" She shouted over her shoulder. "And I'll walk!"
Miharu stood helplessly in the crowd, watching an irate Xiaoyu disappear.
*********************************************************************************
A/N: Just so you know, I don't hate either Hwoarang or Christie, I've just had them this way for the purpose of this story.